Processing facilities are often managed using process control systems. Example processing facilities include manufacturing plants, chemical plants, crude oil refineries, ore processing plants, and paper or pulp manufacturing and processing plants. Among other operations, process control systems typically manage the use of motors, valves, and other industrial equipment in the processing facilities.
In conventional process control systems, process controllers are often used to control the operation of the industrial equipment in the processing facilities. The process controllers could, for example, monitor the operation of the industrial equipment, provide control signals to the industrial equipment, and generate alarms when malfunctions are detected. Some process controllers operate using models of the processes being controlled. The models allow the controllers to determine, based on input signals from sensors or other data, how to control the industrial equipment.